Our democracy and identity are being challenged by hatred

Hate is not a campaign.

The fact we have to vocalize this sentiment in modern Canadian politics is alarming. This is a sentiment that was once a given in politics, but as the Ontario election nears, Canadian democracy and identity are being challenged.

When the world is reeling, Canada, the true north strong and free, has been the compass for the rest of world: steadying dissent, championing multiculturalism, preserving peace and providing opportunities for innovation that bolster human rights and create the world’s future leaders.

We are wavering in our identity and our commitment to the world. We no longer call a lie a lie. We allow those who represent us on an international stage to slander minorities, use salacious hate to garner attention, and make claims that are offensive to our basic intelligence.

We cower in fear of being labelled liberal or conservative. We then use these labels to dismiss logic and fact, and attack one another on a personal level. We have become mean and are now attacking our own democracy.

Democracy is bettered by debate, but we are no longer debating. We are attacking and pandering, and by doing so we have made articulate debate, science, and human rights the enemy. Enough is enough.

We are no longer scared to call out those who lie to the public. Demanding facts to show the economic realities of one liners is not elitist but a necessity. We will not stand silent while leaders promise to break international law by fixing commodity prices, erase decades of Supreme Court precedent protecting women and minorities, and represent Canada as a closed society.

When we allow hate to be spread and fail to challenge it, we embolden those who harbour homophobic, sexist, racist and xenophobic beliefs. Rainbow crosswalks are being vandalized, houses of worship are targeted, children are taught to recognize the differences in one another, science and history are unjustly changed — and that was all last week.

This is not the province or country we seek to be, and when we waver the world suffers.

Russia operates concentration camps, disappearing LGBTQ+ individuals without consequence, anti-Semitic banners hang in Budapest’s square without acknowledgement, and children attend school in fear while others cannot fathom the realities of school amid the rubble of cluster munitions and chemical weapon attacks.

The world is crying out, and Canada must answer the call.

To our leaders, we will not stand for hate. We demand more of you. We will no longer vote based upon who is the lesser of two evils. We demand transparency, fact and articulate debate. You will represent Canada and the legacy we have built with an elegant strength and defend human rights with unabashed reverence.

Democracy lays the power of our country and province at the feet of the electorate. We will use this power to demand more. We will not become apathetic, instead we will become engaged. We must use this power, as it is our civic duty to not only our ridings and province but the world. Regardless of our affiliations, we will show up, we will exercise our power, and those we elect will be accountable to the people.

This election will be the signpost to the rest of the world that hate has no place in politics. Canadians will not be divided. We will not turn on one another and allow those in power to capitalize on our disillusionment.

We will not allow our province and our country to be dragged into the hateful trenches other nations are digging; instead, we will fight to pull the rest of the world into the light.

Now we must do better. Our leaders must do better, our media must do better, and our electorate must do better, because — hate is not a campaign.

Taylor Lambert holds a BA in political science and a BA in conflict studies from the University of Waterloo and has worked on the Commission Against Torture in North Carolina, as well as represented torture victims in the European Court of Human Rights. She has run development projects in conflict ridden countries for the UN and worked as an adviser for the Canadian Department of Defence. She is a program manager with the NATO Association assisting with Ukraine’s bid to join NATO.